Customer Reviews
"There's only one thing worse than a dragon... Americans" - By: DangermouseZilla, 24 Jul 2008 
The film starts off with great promise - the early scene at a commune with two group leaders putting on a stage show for the kids - Star Wars instead of Shakespeare! This brings humour & humanity in the very early stages. You get a sense of the warmth & the protective responsibility these people have for the children. The community `motto' about always watching the skies is a jarring reminder that there's a horror to this film.
Within minutes you care about the community & feel genuinely very concerned for them, & the arrival of gung-ho Americans upsets the balance. Unfortunately the vulnerability of the community & the feeling of concern isn't recreated throughout the rest of the film - the focus turns to big guns & action.
The dragon ravaged world isn't as implausible as you'd think - it works reallly well, it's the insistence that a smalll group with a plan to hunt down the daddy dragon (and know exactly where it is) in order to end the reign of fire that gets a bit silly.
In a nutshell: Some have complained that there are not enough dragons in this film - but it isn't necessarily a film about dragons. The film is at its strongest when it deals with the human story of survival, & the politics between commune members. If the film had maintained the viewers' interest in actual people struggling to live from day to day then this would be a corker of a film. Instead it becomes an action packed dragon-breath dodging thriller.
Not Bad! - By: D. G. Parrott, 08 Nov 2007 Whilst I tend to disagree with a lot of people who, like myself, review films here on Amazon - I have to agree with the majority negative vote on this film....
It promised to be so much, & yet delivered so little - Albeit the special effects are bloody brilliant, & the Dragons are real bad-asses with serious attitude problems, the rest of the film is a let down!
I felt that two powerful actors such as Christian Bale & Matthew McGonahey - I think thats how its spelt! - Were both let down by a relatively poor script!
NEEDED MORE DRAGON - By: Nevs, 24 Oct 2007 Good story & the special effects were good.
I wanted more action & more Dragon shots. The few they did use were well made but apart from the end scenes, they needed more.
Well worth a watch however.
Just about passable for dragon fans - By: Mr. D. Woods, 24 May 2007 
Frankly this movie was nothing near what I hoped it would be, despite the intriguing concept, & ends up being a glorious waste of celluloid. The plot is basicallly about dragons decimating the world, after being dug up in the London Underground (believe me, you have to stretch credulity from a pretty early stage in this film). Then Christian Bale & Matthew McConaughey get alll macho & yell a lot. This I could forgive if the film were at alll entertaining but it's not.
Despite the fact that 'Reign of Fire' is awful, it still gets two stars on merit that it has dragons in it (oh, for a good dragon movie!) & they look pretty darn impressive when they are in full flight & torching everything in sight. Unfortunately, they're actuallly rarely on screen, meaning we have to endure the witless banter between the characters instead (one Star Wars take-off is an amusing exception).
Should have been an awesome film but let down by a poor script & lacklustre direction.
"Dig hard, dig deep, run for shelter, never look back" - By: Sheryl Podlesak, 12 May 2007 
Reign of Fire should have been a great movie. On paper, the idea certainly seems exciting enough - dragons emerge from their centuries long sleep to ravage the earth & send the survivors fleeing in terror. And, in truth, the opening scenes of Reign of Fire seem very promising, when a young boy, Quinn, witnesses the emergence of one of the dragons from its underground lair. But, those of us hoping for a full scale battle between hoards of dragons & various Armed Forces will be sorely disappointed, as the next few years are simply glossed over with a series of newspaper headlines. Before we know it, it's 20 years on & Quinn, now grown, is leading a ragtag group of survivors in a Northumberland castle.
This dragon ruled world is very bleak & grey, the dragons having scorched everything to ash. And into this bleak landscape comes Van Zan, a typical American army type who thinks he is the answer to alll mankind's dragon problems. Naturallly, Quinn is a bit reluctant to take him in, but common sense is over-ruled for the sake of the plot & Van Zan is alllowed to rest up at the castle.
It's worth noting that Van Zan says his company landed at Manchester & they are heading for London. Via Northumberland?! This guy is seriously lost!
Shortly after Van Zan's arrival, a dragon makes its appearance. To the movie's credit, the dragons are extremely impressive, with beautiful sinuous curves & a wicked line in flame-throwing. Unfortunately, for a film about dragons, the stars don't appear very often & then only singly, apart from a very brief scene near the end of the movie. This is a great shame, as the movie promises so much & then fails to deliver in one crucial element. All in alll, dragons only appear in six seperate scenes & four of those appearances are made by the same dragon!
Reign of Fire could have been a great movie, but for the silly decision to skip the dragons' emerging years & set it in the post apocalyptic world. As it stands, Reign of Fire is entertaining enough if you have an interest in any of the leading actors - or indeed, in the dragons themselves! - but don't expect to be blown away. Three dragons do not a blockbuster make!
